Sumaries Malala

Juan Sebastián Pinzon coy

8-42
1 chapter
Malala explains that she was born at dawn (traditionally a sign of luck in her community),
but many people in the village still felt sorry for her family because Malala was a girl. As
she puts it, women in her country are seen as second-class citizens, fit only for making food
and birthing more children.
2 chapter
Malala’s father, she notes, had an ironic curse: although he loved poetry and words, he had
a horrible stutter that made it difficult for him to communicate. His stutter was worsened by
the fact that his own father (Malala’s grandfather), Rohul Amin, had a beautiful, clear
voice. Rohul was a popular theology teacher, widely praised for his electrifying speeches
and sermons. Rohul took his son to get various treatments for his stutter, but none of them
worked. Despite his speech impediment, Ziauddin attended the best schools in the valley, a
luxury that didn’t extend to his sisters (Malala’s aunts). Growing up, Ziauddin was also fed
better than his sisters.
3 chapter
Malala notes that her mother began and finished school at the age of six. At first Tor Pekai
was proud of being the only girl in her school, but ultimately, she couldn’t force herself to
continue—she saw her female friends playing every day, and couldn’t convince herself that
there was any point to learning. After Tor Pekai married Ziauddin, however, she began to
regret her decision. Her husband was extremely knowledgeable, and she couldn’t keep up
with him. Largely because of Tor Pekai’s encouragement, Ziauddin founded a school for
girls.
4 chapter
Growing up, Malala’s parents noticed that she had the qualities of both of her grandfathers:
like Rohul, she was vocal, and like Tor Pekai’s grandfather, she was calm and wise. Malala
loved to spend time with Rohul, whom she knew as Baba. Baba would sing Malala songs
and tell her stories.
5 chapter
As a child, Malala gained a reputation for being highly intelligent in her classes. She
participated in almost every student activity—sports, theater, and music. One year, a new
student named Malka e-Noor appeared in her class, and quickly began doing better than
Malala on her exams. Malala was at first shocked that anyone could upstage her.
6 chapter
The Khushal School began to attract more pupils, and so Malala’s family became more
financially secure. Eventually they move into a more comfortable home. One night, Malala
was throwing trash into the large “rubbish mountain” in her community. She noticed a
young girl, about the same age as her, cowering behind the piles of trash. Malala was afraid
to talk to the girl. When she explained what she’d seen to her father, he told her that the girl
was undoubtedly looking for trash that she could sell to a shop—shopkeepers forced
children to search for goods.
7 chapter
Near Malala’s school, there lived a tall, handsome mufti (scholar of Islam) named
Ghulamullah. Malala’s father sensed that Ghulamullah didn’t approve of the notion of a
school for women. “He was right,” Malala notes. Ghulamullah eventually accused Ziauddin
of running a haram (blasphemous) school, and of corrupting women against Allah.
8 chapter
One day in 2005, when Malala was about thirteen years old, there was an earthquake in
Swat. While Mingora was largely spared from damage, the earthquake did huge damage to
nearby cities like Kashmir and Kabul. Children and the elderly died in the disaster. In the
aftermath, Malala’s family campaigned to raise money to help the families of the victims of
the earthquake.
9 chapter
When Malala was ten years old, the Taliban came to the Swat valley. When she first saw
the Taliban, Malala thought they resembled vampires, like the creatures she’d been reading
about in the Twilight books. They wore black turbans and had long beards, even by
Pakistani standards. The leader of the Taliban in the area was a man named Maulana
Fazlullah.
10 chapter
Malala begins the chapter by noting that the Taliban “took our music, then our Buddhas,
then our history.” She elaborates that the Taliban destroyed the Buddhist statues and
monuments where Malala used to play as a child. In 2007, they obliterated a Buddhist
statue that had been standing in the Swat valley since the 7th century.
11 chapter
This was a dark time in Malala’s life: the country was in chaos, and she felt unsafe in her
own town. She didn’t feel comfortable wearing her school uniform, since the uniform was a
sign that she was being educated, and thus, in the Taliban’s eyes, dishonoring Allah.
12 chapter
In 2009, Malala is 12 years old. This is the year in which, by her own reckoning, she begins
actively fighting for justice and equality. Yet as January 2009 begins, the violence in Swat
becomes even more apparent. The Taliban begin killing Swati civilians and leaving their
bodies in the middle of town.
13 chapter
In early 2009, Ziauddin receives a call from his old friend, Abdul Hai Kakar, a BBC
reporter. Abdul wants Ziauddin to help him find a young schoolgirl who could write about
her experiences under the Taliban. When Malala hears that Ziauddin was looking for a
suitable candidate, she volunteers herself. Ziauddin agrees, and Malala begins writing a
regular diary.
14 chapter
In early 2009, the schools in Swat reopen. Because he’s a boy, Khushal is still allowed to
attend classes, but he values education less highly than Malala, and so he says he wants to
stay home with Malala. Malala is furious with this—she insists that Khushal is lucky to be
able to learn. Malala stays at home and educates herself by reading books, including The
Alchemist by Paul Coelho.
15 chapter
In May 2009, Ziauddin makes the difficult decision to take his family out of Mingora. The
area has become too dangerous for a family to live in. Malala is particularly heartbroken
with the news of leaving—she loves her home. On May 5, the family leaves together:
Malala, her siblings and parents, her grandmother, her cousin, his wife, and their child.
Before leaving, the family says a prayer to Allah, asking for protection and guidance.
16 chapter
The chapter begins three months after the events of the previous one. Malala has been away
from her home, Mingora, for months—but now she and her family are driving back to
Mingora. The prime minister of Pakistan has announced that the Taliban have been cleared
out of Swat, making the area safe once again.
17 chapter
When Malala is 13, she stops growing—suddenly, she’s one of the shortest girls in her
class. As she becomes more conscious of her shortness, she begins to lose some of the
confidence that made her a good public speaker and interviewee.
18 chapter
As the chapter begins, Malala’s Aunt Najma is crying. She and Malala, along with the rest
of Malala’s immediate family, are sitting on the beaches of the Arabian Sea. Malala and her
family have come to the seaside town of Karachi to visit Najma. Although Najma has lived
in Karachi for thirty years, she has never seen the ocean, since she’s required to be
accompanied by a man and to wear a burqa at all times.
19 chapter
It is April 2012, and Malala is on a school trip to Marghazar, a green valley near Mingora.
Malala walks with her friend Moniba. They walk near a tranquil river, and playfully splash
each other with water. Malala compliments Moniba for her beautiful skin.
20 chapter
In the late summer of 2010, a math teacher at Malala’s school, Miss Shazia, tells Ziauddin
that she’s had a nightmare. In the nightmare, she saw Malala walking around with one of
her legs badly burned. Miss Shazia thinks that this is a sign for Ziauddin to give food to the
poor (a common Pakistani remedy for a bad “premonition”). Ziauddin gives money to the
poor, but Miss Shazia finds the gesture unsatisfactory.
21 chapter
As the chapter opens, Malala has just been shot by a Taliban soldier. The bus driver,
Usman Bhai Jan drives the bus as quickly as he can to the Swat Central Hospital. The news
of Malala’s shooting spreads very quickly, and within only a few minutes, a local has called
Ziauddin with the news that his daughter’s school bus has just been attacked.
22 chapter
In the hours following Doctor Reynolds and Doctor Kayani’s visit, Colonel Junaid refuses
to make any of the changes they recommended. Partly as a result of his inaction, Malala’s
condition deteriorates. She develops a condition called DIC (disseminated intravascular
coagulation), which results in her blood not circulating properly, endangering her life.
23 chapter
Malala wakes up in Birmingham, England, on October 16. The first thing she thinks is,
“Thank God I’m not dead.” The first person she talks to is Dr. Kayani, who speaks to her in
Urdu. Dr. Kayani explains that she’s in England, and that her parents are still in Pakistan.
Malala finds this news enormously distressing. A Muslim chaplain named Rehanna visits
Malala and calms her down somewhat by reciting Quranic verses.
24 chapter
Malala’s parents arrive in England and travel to Birmingham. Malala is moved to a large
room with windows, and she’s able to see the natural beauty of England for the first time.
When Malala reunites with her parents, she can’t help but weep. In the 16 days since she
last spoke to her parents